Gregg Kowlessar

A truck driver once told me, “Acting, huh? When’re you gunna come back down to earth and get a real job?” I giggled, nervously, and like the awkward teenage boy that I was, passively clenched my fist and resisted the urge to punch the remaining six teeth in his mouth.

Hello, my name is Gregg Kowlessar, and I’m an actor based in Long Island, New York. I’ve been the recipient of the best comedic actor and best classical actor at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in recent years.

It is my belief that acting can have an impact on the world; it definitely has had an impact on me. It has altered my perspective. I am now learning to understand humanity a little more each day. I’ve discovered that acting, if done truthfully, can change the perspective of people. When something has the power to change the perspective of even just one person, it can ultimately lead to real substantial change in the world. As for that truck driver, I hope one day he takes his family to see a show, only to open up his playbill and find my name. I may not have punched him, but I can’t think of a better way to make him regret his attempt to crush a young thespian’s dream than to make that dream come to fruition. It should, without a doubt, be a cathartic experience for him.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me. And with that, I’ll leave you with a quote:

“To get into the best society, nowadays, one has either to feed people, amuse people, or shock people.”